the camera support equipment

3 The Camera Support Equipment

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only.

• Identify the challenges and benefits involved in using hand-held camera shooting.

• Recognize the types of tripod heads available and cite the unique characteristics of each.

I Can . . .


Camcorder Camera Mounts

• Tripod shooting• Image stabilization devices• Jib• Crane• Hand-held shooting


Tripod

• Three legs• Length of each leg can be independently extended• Sometimes has vertical column in center which can be

raised and lowered• Pedestal column• Handle that raises and lowers pedestal is

pedestal control, which should not be used when camera is recording, or hot, to avoid audience seeing shaking screen

• Vertical tension must be set tight enough to hold the camera level

• Some include a quick-release mechanism which makes is easier to attach and remove the camera


Tripod Head

• Attaches to top of tripod• Camera attaches to tripod head• Head allows pans and tilts to occur• Head has one or two pan handles attached

so operator can stand behind camera and move it with handle


Tripod Tips

• Verify the tripod head is level by adjusting the length of the legs or using the ball head

• Screw the camera onto the head firmly so it does not wobble

• If the tripod has a center column, try not to raise it – it makes the unit less stable

• Point one leg at the subject• This allows you to stand between the other two legs and

get close to the camera

• To pan, stand facing the center of the move and twist your body to frame the first shot. Continue twisting your body until the last shot.


Tripod Head and Pan Handles


Fluid Head

• Two pieces of metal, separated by grease, screwed together

• Professional• More expensive• High quality because grease allows varying

degrees of pressure to cause varying levels of resistance (drag) when panning and tilting


Friction Head

• Two pieces of metal mashed together by tightening screw

• Unprofessional• Inexpensive• Low quality because drag is either fully on

or fully off• Offers poor resistance when panning and

tilting


Tripod with Dolly

• Dolly has three wheels with tripod legs that fit into it


CHS Dollies

• Universal folding dolly• Max load 35lbs• Diameter 31”• Adjusting slide foot clamp


Dolly – make your own


Studio Pedestal

• Vertical column with base and three wheels on bottom

• Heavy• Pneumatics or

hydraulics assist movement

• Has wheel to steer it as it moves

Vinten Broadcast Ltd.


Image Stabilization Device

Glidecam Industries, Inc.


Steadi Cam – Steady walk

3 Parts 1.Vest2.Arm3.Sled


Steadi Cam Examples


Subjective Camera

Also Known as POV – Point of View Shots

• Shows what a character is looking at

• Camera is their eyes• Sense of participating in the scene

• Evokes what the character sees & feels


Jib

EZFX Inc.


Jib Examples


Crane – Holds Camera & Crew

Video Clip

Aerial Filming


Hand-Held

• Should be avoided if possible• Produces good images for mere seconds• Otherwise, produces shaky camerawork• Never use zoom-in settings when hand

holding


Handholding the Camera

• Whenever possible, brace yourself against something

• To shoot a low angle, sit with the camera in your lap and swing the viewfinder up to look down into the camera

• Try not to walk unless required by the shot• Unless the shot is long, take a deep breath then let

some out and hold the remainder while you shoot• The wider the camera angle, the less obvious any

shake will be• Use lens stabilization feature if available


If You Must Hand-Hold…


Simple Do’s and Don’t’s

• Avoid swinging the camera back and forth from one subject to another• Get a good shot of each and shoot as a separate shot

• Do not make shots too brief for the viewer to look at• 3-5 seconds is a general minimum length

• Do not pose subjects against the sky, white walls, or backgrounds lighter than their faces• Deceives the auto exposure and results in poorly-lit

scenes

• Avoid zooming while shooting if hand-holding the camera• Shoot each as a separate shot


Art of Cinematography

• Cameraman and Director of Photography Greg Collier discusses building and using equipment to add camera motion in Cinematography

• Steadicam• Jib• Remote head


Why is a hand-held not the camera of choice?Produces shaky camerawork and low-quality images.

Review Question


Name and describe the different tripod heads.Friction head–Unprofessional, inexpensive, low quality, offers poor resistance when panning and tilting.Fluid head–Professional, expensive, high quality, allows varying degrees of resistance when panning and tilting.

Review Question


Which is better—a fluid head or a friction head? Why?Fluid head is better because it will provide drag when panning or tilting, which makes for more stable picture.

Review Question


• dolly: A three-wheeled cart onto which the feet of a tripod are mounted. A dolly allows smooth camera movements to be performed.

• drag: Resistance to movement created by tripod head mount.

Glossary


• fluid head: A mounting assembly on some tripods that stabilizes the camera using the pressure between two pieces of metal and a thick fluid that provides additional resistance to movement.

Glossary


• friction head: A mounting assembly on some tripods that stabilizes the camera using the pressure created when two pieces of metal are squeezed together by a screw.

Glossary


• jib: A type of camera mount that allows the camera to be raised high over the set and swung in any direction.

Glossary


• pan handle: A device attached to the back of the camera when on the tripod head that allows the camera operator to move the tripod head while standing behind the tripod.

Glossary


• pedestal column: A column in the center of a tripod used to raise or lower the camera.

• pedestal control: A crank on the side of the pedestal column that twists a gear to raise and lower the pedestal column.

Glossary


• studio pedestal: A large, single column on wheels that supports the camera and is pneumatically or hydraulically controlled.

Glossary


• subjective camera: A hand-held camera technique, in which the camera itself becomes the eye of one cast member. The viewers see the world through the eyes of that character.

• tripod: A three-legged stand that supports a camera.

Glossary


• tripod head: The assembly at the top of the pedestal column to which the camera attaches.

Glossary

the camera support equipment

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